train to roma

Karen: The price on Trenitalia is €160 for two people on the Freccia. Well worth the price for the time it will save.
I also checked Italo here and tickets are available for €64 per person, €128.00 for two. It stops at Tiburtina in Roma, not Termini, but is on the Metro line. Very nice trains!

karen, As Laurel mentioned, the price for the trip from Venice to Rome is €160 for two passengers. The prices would have been cheaper if you'd booked earlier, but at this point your only choice is Base Fare. The only savings possible now would be €32 by using Italo instead of Trenitalia. Arriving at Tiburtina instead of Termini is not a huge problem, as it's only two or three stops from Termini on the Metro (or you could use a Taxi). Happy travels!

You certainly don't need to worry about €160 per person.... it is €160 for TWO. Or cheaper and nicer on the .Italo at €64 pp. BUT, pay €1 each and travel in Prima Classe on .Italo. You will get in a bit early - the train leaves Venice at 10:07, arriving at 13:30. The next one is 3 hours later. Could your apartment be a bit more flexible. Some may be.
You've got to commit to a specific train, although at that price they are changeable with supplement, not refundable.

Thank you all for your help. It was very helpful! If I wait until the day of travel to buy my train ticket will I have difficulty? I dislike being bound to a specific date.

Karen, a couple of things. 1) The regular fare on the Frecci fast train to Rome from Venice is 80Euro pp. The journey time is about 3:45 with some runs a bit faster. 2) Not willing to accept a firm travel date and time will force you to pay full fare for your flexibility. You are traveling on 9/20 so that part is firm. Buying ahead now and accepting a non-refundable ticket and non-exchangeable ticket right now in trade for a firm departure time can save you 42Euro ($56) right now (#4 below). You do this for your airplane ride, why not a nice fast train? 3) You can buy your ticket in Italy but my experience in Venice is that there are long lines at the train station. You will pay the full fare of 80Euro. 4) If you sign on to www.trenitalia.com right now, you can buy a first class ride on the best fast train for 59Euro pp. The train departs at 06:13. I realize that that's a bit early but you're in Rome by 9:10. This is one of only 2 better deals I see on Trenitalia for 9/20. Here's a picture of what I see. http://gyazo.com/09f5ee1514dfc3cb4c7e2947022d5f39 The second deal is also on the picture above. It's the night train departing at 00:08 and arriving in Rome at 06:35. 36Euro per person. Finally, you can do this entire journey on local Regionale trains for 40.25Euro. You would take the following trains: Venice/Bologna, Bologna/Florence and then Florence/Rome. Three trains - 10.5 hours for the journey time. You depart at 6:43 and arrive about 15:00

If you don't mind paying full fare, there is no need to buy in advance. In addition to the ticket windows at the station (which often do have long lines), there are ticket machines which accept cash and US credit cards, and usually have very short lines, or you can buy from a travel agent in town (Rick lists several in his books), which may have a slight additional fee but will be easy.

Karen In your OP you led off with: I can't believe I'm having such difficulty finding a reasonably priced train ticket We then showed you several ways to save money, even at this late date, and/or get better seats for pennies more. Now you have said that you don't want to commit. That's fair enough - it is your holiday. But which do you want? Money in your pocket or full price for the train and make up your mind on the day? It is just like flying. More money = more choice. Nobody here can tell you when the discounted tickets available when we posted today will sell out but we can give you a copper bottom guarantee that if you buy on the day you will pay the absolutely highest price - unless you do the all Regionale journey. And I can tell you from personal experience that Regionale trains between Bologna and Firenze are like hens teeth. I'm confused. Which is more important to you?

Karen, I'm confused. You dislike being bound to a specific date and yet you have to arrive in Rome around 3 pm on 9/20? How is that not a specific date (and time, for that matter)? Something doesn't make sense.

karen, The €80 price is "Base Fare" so you won't pay any more if you buy the tickets locally, a day or so before you'll be travelling. If you'd prefer to maintain more flexibility in your Itinerary and buy tickets there, you could certainly do that. You could either buy the tickets at Venezia S.L. station or one of the travel agents in Venice (I'd have to check for the name and location of the T.A.). Using the travel agent would save you from making a trip to the station. I enjoy taking a leisurely walk to the station the day before travel, as it's nice to see all the daily activity taking place. In choosing other train routes, you'll have to consider whether you're willing to tolerate the "hassle factor" of using a combination of Regionale and premium trains with multiple changes and slower travel times. I prefer my trips to be as hassle-free as possible, so I'd pay the money for the fast trains. It's a VERY pleasant ride! Cheers!

We have used the travel agency Oltrex in Venice. It is very easy to find and very close to San Marco right on the Riva. It is one bridge past the Bridge of Sighs. Currently it appears to be a 4 Euro fee for bkg train tkts and reservations. We last used them in 2009 to purchase train tkts and had 5 people in our group. The fee was for the entire group per journey and not per ticket. Used the new train company ITALO for our trip this past July and can highly recommend. ITALO trains do come into Tiburtina station in Rome but it is an easy subway ride to Centrale. We rented an apt. in Rome and took a taxi from Tiburtina to our apt. near Piazza Navonna.